


Drabble Prompts

by saffrondawn



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-30
Updated: 2014-04-30
Packaged: 2018-01-21 10:17:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1547126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saffrondawn/pseuds/saffrondawn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Some short drabbles, requested by Tumblr users.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Drabble Prompts

**Author's Note:**

> sapphireglyphs requested Ward x Simmons: High School Teachers AU

Jemma Simmons pulled into the school parking lot five minutes later than she wanted to. Her apartment had been too hot to fall asleep, but she did and was woken by her best friend, Leo Fitz, with more experiment ideas for her students. As she pulled her backpack on and her keys deposited in her purse, the gruff sound of a motorcycle engine assaulted her ears. She was used to the putrid smell of exhaust since Leo decided the carpeted floor of their apartment during graduate school was the best place to oil his machine parts. The motorcycle rider pulled up to the space next to hers, cut the engine, and took off the helmet.

There had been a few staff changes at the end of last year, and now there were openings in French, history, and theatre. This new addition— a tall, dark haired man—could work as the new basketball coach, but she couldn’t see him as anything else. He slid off the bike, quickly inspected to see his ride was safe before looking up to see Jemma standing there.

“Bonjour,” he said. French.

“Salut,” she responded informally.

He broke out into a wide grin, and spouted something that Jemma didn’t catch.

“Je sais un peu de francais,” she said, barely remembering the phrase from her required foreign language courses.

“No problem,” he said, while tearing off his gloves with his teeth, “Grant Ward, French.”

She shook his hand, “Jemma Simmons, Chemistry.”

“Are you new, too?”

“No. I’ve been here for three years. You’re new, though.”

The wide grin was still there, “Yeah. I figured I should return to the land of the living.”

Before Jemma could ask him to explain, her phone started to rind. Leo. “I should get this.”

“Of course. It was nice to meet you, Jemma.” He walked away as she answered.

“What are the parameters the school board gave you?”

***

Jemma thumped into the plastic chair in the teachers’ lounge. Her lunch sat in front of her, but all she wanted to do was go home, take a shower, and reevaluate her decision to become a high school chemistry teacher. In America of all places.

“I didn’t know we could barbecue in class,” a voice said behind her as the owner sat down next to her.

Jemma didn’t have to turn to know it was Grant. “An involuntary one. Is it really that bad?”

Grant leaned over and took a deep breath, “It could be worse.” He moved back before continuing, “What were you teaching today?”

“The proper use of the Bunsen burner. Someone brought in marshmallows, and well, I’m sure you can figure it out.”

“They probably know of your wicked reputation,” Grant said with a devious glint to his eyes.

Jemma sat back, “So you’ve heard.”

“Oh yeah,” he said with a laugh. “You’re some of my students’ favorite teacher. I was a little insulted at first, but once they get onto the stories…” He drifted off like he was relieving one of the greatest moments of his life.

“Those were all in the name of science with sensitive materials. Also, there was nothing written down saying I couldn’t do those experiments.”

“I figured. I just didn’t think you had it in you.” Grant started to unpack his lunch, and Jemma couldn’t stop herself from blushing at his comment.

***

“You have walked in snow, right?” Jemma asked, as she watched Grant get out of her car. He was taking baby steps toward her on the sidewalk. Once the first snow started to fall, Grant hadn’t been able to ride his bike to work, so she offered to carpool.

“Yes,” he said, as he looped her arm through his. “But I usually avoid cold climates once winter comes.”

She started to walk, and he tensed before quickly getting his bearings again. “Is that why you’ve been showing those cheesy beach movies in class.”

“Hey, hey, Ms Dynamite. You blow up stuff, and I inform my students of American beach culture via French subtitles.”

Jemma sighed, “I guess, but please don’t show them any superheroes. The last one you forced on me to watch was terrible.”

He lightly knocked into her, “But you said you loved superhero films.”

“Not ones where I need a lemon to restart my brain.”

He opened the door for her, and she stepped through. Their weekly movies started nonchalantly when she mentioned that he hadn’t seen some French art house film that he was in love with. They had met that weekend, and she could feel his glance every so often, gauging her reaction. She had genuinely enjoyed it, so when Monday rolled around, she suggested a movie that he possibly couldn’t have heard of. She was right, and suggested he come over to watch since it was a bit older, and wouldn’t be in the theaters. And that’s when it started. Shortly after, the snow started.

Leo teased her over the phone whenever she couldn’t think of a new film. He flat out asked her once if the two of them were dating. Jemma flubbed her way through the conversation, of course, but it made her think. And then it made her push it to the back of her mind.

“Jem, you said the beer was adequate for the movie,” he seemed confused. “No lemon needed.”

The warmth of the enclosed high school caused her to hand her backpack to Grant while she shrugged off her parka. She exchanged the favor by holding his bag as he did the same. Usually, they would walk side by side to the fork in the building where he would turn left to go toward his classroom, and she would go right toward hers. However, he placed his arm across her shoulders, and he followed her to her class.

“I was referencing a film. Well, more like a book.” She was proud of herself for not stammering her words. This wasn’t the first time she was extremely close to Grant, but it was definitely the first time he had his arms across her without a care.

“Is it good?”

“That’s debatable.”

They reached her door, and she unlocked it. He followed her in, and sat at her desk while she turned the lights on, and started gathering materials for that day’s experiment.

“Shouldn’t you be heading to your room?” She asked after several minutes.

“I have time.”

Jemma glanced at the clock on the wall. There was about twenty minutes before the first students would walk in. When she believed she was done, she walked to the front of the room, and glanced around to make sure she wasn’t missing anything. She could feel Grant’s eyes on her, and it made her blush.

“Please stop.”

“Stop what?”

“Looking at me.”

“You’re the only one to look at.”

Jemma moved to her desk in frustration. He stood quickly, well aware of when Jemma Simmons was on a mission. “I’m asking you to either stop looking at me, or leave for your class.”

“Jemma, what did I do wrong?”

She pinched the bridge of her nose between her fingers. “You touched me.”

“What?”

“You put your arm on my shoulders. I know it’s little, but we’re co-workers, Grant.”

“We’re friends, Jem. We hang out at lunch, and see movies on the weekend together. I’ve slept on your couch, and you’ve slept on my bed. That’s more than co-workers.”

Jemma nodded furiously, “Fine, we’re friends.” She wanted the conversation to end, and she could see the small degree of hurt in his eyes.

He nodded before walking around her, and leaving.

***

Jemma twisted her arm back and forth slowly, evaluating how bad of a broken wrist she had received. She kept going through her head what had happened, but she couldn’t find any errors. She had sent the notes to Leo for a second opinion, and he signed off on it.

But here she was, sitting on a gurney in a hospital hallway, watching as the school administrators were glancing between themselves and her. She knew she was getting fired, but the possible fine and/or prison sentence was still being debated.

Her thoughts were broken when she heard a man with a thick accent, and another man were arguing with a semi-calm doctor. She directed her gaze from the administrators to see Leo and Grant demanding to see her. She rolled her eyes and hopped off the gurney, which proved to not be in her best interest. She hissed with pain as she remembered that her fall onto the gravel had made her jeans stab into her skin. The bandages the nurse put on her proved some padding, but the area was sore.

She walked toward them, and only when she was a few feet away did they recognize her. Leo bolted toward her first, covering her with as much as himself as he could. She hugged her friend back in ernest.

“I thought you had died, Jemma,” he said into her shoulder.

She let him go, “Don’t worry. I’m still here, but I do suspect sabotage. You checked the mechanics of the rockets. Toy rockets! They don’t even have that much power anyway. There’s no way it could have done that much damage.”

Grant nodded in the direction of the administrators, “They seem to think so.”

“Well, they’re number one on my list,” Jemma said, holding Leo with one arm, and unsure of what do with Grant.

“They were perfect, Jemma,” Leo had his ‘expert’ voice on. “I checked them. I had some of my old lab partners check them.”

“They were terrible in lab,” Jemma’s tone was serious, but there was a dose of mocking.

“Yes, but their maths were correct,” he defended before turning to Grant. “We were fighting with that doctor. Leo Fitz.”

“Grant Ward,” he said as he shook the other man’s hand.

The corners of Leo’s mouth perked up, and Jemma knew what that meant. “Believe me, I know who you are. Jemma won’t shut up about you sometimes. I swear if the two don’t start dating, I’ll find a way.” He quickly turned to Jemma. “Which reminds me, I’m going to check you out.” Leo sped off so fast Jemma wasn’t sure if she was comprehending what was going on.

“All the time?” Grant asked.

She directed her attention back to him, “Not all the time.”

“But some time?”

“Some time.”

Grant stepped forward and looked sheepish, “I talk about you to my step-dad.”

“All the time?”

“Some time.”

“Is he fanatical like Leo?”

Grant thought for a second, “Maybe more so.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was fluff, then it turned into angst, and it seems I can’t do anything else with them!


End file.
